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Bubble tea

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Bubble tea is a sweetly flavored tea beverage invented in Taiwan. Drink recipes may vary, but most bubble teas contain a tea base mixed with fruit (or fruit syrup) and/or milk. Ice blended versions of the drink are also available, usually in fruit flavors. Bubble teas usually contain small tapioca balls or pearls called "boba". Pearls made of jelly are also available in many places. These teas are shaken to mix the ingredients, creating a foam on the top of some varieties, hence the name.

Bubble tea originated in Taiwan in the 1980s, first spread to nearby East Asian countries, migrated to Canada before spreading to Chinatowns throughout the United States, and then to various college towns along the West Coast.[1]

There are many variants of the drink, depending on types of tea used and ingredients added. The most popular kinds are "bubble black tea" (Chinese: 泡沫紅茶; pinyin: pào mò hóng chá; lit. 'froth red tea'), "bubble green tea" (Chinese: 泡沫綠茶; pinyin: pào mò lǜ chá), and "pearl milk tea" (Chinese: 珍珠奶茶; pinyin: zhen zhu nǎi chá).

A common misconception in its English usage, the name "bubble tea" is often associated with pearl milk tea. However, "bubble tea" simply refers to the shaken or whipped drink base. "Bubble tea with pearls" is a more accurate description of the Taiwanese shaken/stirred/whipped tea containing tapioca pearls. Pearl milk tea (of which "bubble tea with pearls" is a subset), also known as "boba milk tea", can refer to any milk tea commonly used, such as Hong Kong-style milk tea, combined with tapioca.

Description

Bubble teas are generally of two distinct types: fruit-flavored teas, and milk teas. However, some shops offer a hybrid "fruit milk tea." Milk teas may use dairy or non-dairy creamers. Some more healthy varieties are 100% crushed fruit smoothies with pearls and signature ice cream shakes made from local ice cream sources. Many American bubble tea vendors sell "milk smoothies", which is similar to bubble tea but does not actually contain any tea ingredients. Some small cafes offer sweetener substitutes such as honey, agave, stevia, and aspartame upon special request.

The oldest known bubble tea consisted of a mixture of hot Taiwanese black tea, small tapioca pearls (粉圆), condensed milk, and syrup (糖浆) or honey. According to the contested originator (春水堂) from Taichung, the drink was not popular at first, but after being featured on a Japanese TV-show, the concept started to be adopted and popularized by drink vendors throughout Asia.[2][3] Many variations were created, the most common improvement is to serve the drink cold rather than hot. The tea type is frequently replaced. First was the bubble green tea, which uses jasmine-infused green tea (茉香绿茶) instead of black tea. Big tapioca pearls (波霸/黑珍珠) were adapted and quickly replaced the small pearls.[2][3] Peach or plum flavoring appeared, then more fruit flavors were added until, in some variations, the tea was removed entirely in favor of real fruit. These fruit versions usually contain colored pearls (and/or "jelly cubes" as in the related drink taho), the color chosen to match whatever fruit juice is used. Flavors may be added in the form of powder, fruit juice, pulp, or syrup to hot black or green tea, which is then shaken in a cocktail shaker or mixed with ice in a blender until chilled. Cooked tapioca pearls and other mix-ins are added at the end.

Today one can find shops entirely devoted to bubble tea, similar to the juice bars of the early 1990s. Some cafes use plastic dome-shaped lids, while other bubble tea bars serve it using a machine to seal the top of the cup with plastic cellophane. This allows the tea to be shaken in the serving cup. The cellophane is then pierced with an oversize straw large enough to allow the pearls to pass through.

Variants

Each of the ingredients of bubble tea can have many variations depending on the tea house. Typically, different types of black tea, green tea, or even coffee can form the basis of this beverage. The most common black tea varieties are Oolong and Earl Grey, while jasmine green tea is a mainstay at almost all tea houses. Another variation called 鸳鸯 (yuanyang, named after the "mandarin duck") originated in Hong Kong and consists of half black tea and half coffee. Decaffeinated versions of teas are sometimes available when the tea house fresh brews the tea base.

The milk in bubble tea is optional, though many tea houses use it. Some cafes use a non-dairy creamer milk substitute instead of milk because many East Asians are lactose intolerant.[4] Soy milk options are widely available for those who avoid dairy products. This adds a distinct flavor and consistency to the drink.

Different flavorings can be added to bubble tea. Some widely available fruit flavors include strawberry, green apple, passion fruit, mango, lemon, watermelon, grape, lychee, peach, pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, banana, avocado, coconut, kiwi, and jackfruit. Other popular non-fruit flavors include taro, pudding, chocolate, coffee, mocha, barley, sesame, almond, ginger, lavender, rose, caramel and violet. Some of the sour fruit flavors are only available in bubble tea without milk as the acidity will curdle the milk.

Other drinks of the boba drink can include blended drinks. Many stores in the US provide a list of choices to choose from. Some may include coffee blended drinks, or even smoothies.

Tapioca balls are the prevailing chewy tidbit in bubble tea, but a wide range of other options can be used to add similar texture to the drink. Green pearls have a small hint of green tea flavor, and are chewier than the traditional tapioca balls. Jelly is also used in small cubes, stars, or rectangular strips, with flavors like coconut jelly, konjac, lychee, grass, mango, and green tea. Rainbow (a fruit mix), has a pliant, almost crispy consistency. Red bean or mung bean mush, also typical toppings for Taiwanese shaved ice, give the drink an added subtle flavour as well as texture. Aloe, egg pudding, sago, and taro balls can also be found in most tea houses to complete the perfect cup of tea.

Single-serving packets of black tea (with powdered milk and sugar included) are available as "Instant Boba Milk Tea".

Bubble tea cafes will also frequently serve drinks without coffee or tea in them. The base for these drinks is flavoring blended with ice, often called Snow Bubble. All mix-ins that can be added to the bubble tea can also be added to these slushie-like drinks. One drawback to Snow Bubble is that the coldness of the iced drink may cause the tapioca balls to harden, making them difficult to suck up through a straw and chew. To prevent this from happening, Snow Bubble must be consumed more quickly than bubble tea.

Occasionally, nata de coco is used in mass-produced bubble tea drinks as a healthier alternative to tapioca. Nata de coco is high in dietary fiber and low in cholesterol and fat. The nata de coco is sliced into thin strips to make it easier to pass through a straw.[5]

History

There are two shops that claim to be the creators of bubble tea. One is Chun Shui Tang tea-house (春水堂) in Taichung, Taiwan, where Liu Han Chie experimented with cold milk tea by adding fruit, syrup, candied yams, and tapioca balls in the early 1980s. Although the drink was not popular at first, a Japanese television show generated interest in it among businessmen. The drink became well-known in most parts of East and Southeast Asia during the 1990s.[2]

An alternative origin is the Hanlin (翰林) Teahouse in Tainan, Taiwan, owned by Tu Tsong He Hanlin. He made tea using traditional white fenyuan which have the appearance of pearls, supposedly resulting in the so-called "pearl tea." Shortly after, Hanlin changed the white fenyuan (粉圓) to the black version that is known today.

Names

Bubble tea has many other names:

Chinese

  • 泡沫紅茶 (pinyin: pàomò hóngchá): "foamed red tea", by direct translation, this is the drink that is more appropriate for the literal name of "bubble tea." Consequently, in Asian countries, "bubble tea" is commonly used to refer to this drink for both simplified Chinese users[6] and traditional Chinese users.[7] There is no tapioca in this particular drink. To create this, vendors mix hot or warm tea (in this case, black tea) with syrup/sugar and ice cubes into a cocktail shaker. Then they would shake the shaker either by hand for or machine before it is served. The resulting tea would be covered by a layer of foam/froth and the tea would have a light foamy feel to the taste.[8][9]
  • 泡沫奶茶 (pinyin: pàomò nǎichá): "foamed milk tea". One of the many variants that is prepared the same way as the "foamed red tea," well-shaken before serving.
  • 珍珠奶茶 or 珍奶) (pinyin: zhēnzhū nǎichá): "pearl milk tea," or more commonly referred to as Bubble Tea by most English speakers. The "pearl" name originally referred to the small 1/12" tapioca pearls added to the drink. Though most modern vendors serve only the bigger 1/4" pearls, they will still use "pearl tea" as the name.[2]
  • 波霸奶茶 (pinyin: bōbà nǎichá): "boba milk tea" and also commonly referred to as Bubble Tea by English speakers. The name refers to the variant with big 1/4 tapioca pearls.[2]
  • 黑珍珠奶茶 (pinyin: hēi zhēnzhū nǎichá): "black pearl milk tea," since the bigger 1/4 tapioca pearls are separately sold as "black pearls" (黑珍珠) in markets, this name was the logical first choice, but "Boba" (波霸) proved more popular with the consumers of the drink. Thus, this name is less commonly used.[3]
  • (奶)茶珍珠 (pinyin: (nǎi) chá zhēnzhū): "(milk) tea pearl" (less common)

English

  • boba (milk) tea or drink
  • pearl (milk) tea or drink
  • tapioca milk tea drink
  • milk pearl tea or drink
  • black pearl (milk) tea or drink
  • (milk) tea pearl
  • tapioca (milk) tea or drink
  • bubble tea
  • bubble cup
  • bubble milk
  • tapioca smoothie
  • frubble

Others

  • 보바 드링크, 보바 티, 버블티 (Korean): transliterated "boba drink", "boba tea", "bubble tea"
  • タピオカドリンク (Japanese): transliterated tapiokadorinku translated "tapioca drink"
  • Trà sữa trân châu (Vietnamese): literally "pearl milk tea"
  • ชาไข่มุก, ชานมไข่มุก (Thai): literally "tapioca or pearl tea"
  • Ságo at Guláman (Tagalog): literally "tapioca pearls and agar"
  • Teh Mutiara (Indonesian): literally "pearl tea"
  • Té de burbujas (Spanish): translated "bubbles tea"
  • Suco de Pobá (Portuguese): transliterated "boba juice" from interpretation of boba
  • Thé aux perles (French): translated "tea of beads" or "tea of pearls"
  • តែ​គុជ (Khmer): literally "tapioca pearl tea"

See also

References

  1. ^ Ressner, Jeffrey (February 5, 2001). "Boba Drinks". Time. Retrieved 2008-07-17.
  2. ^ a b c d e http://crystalpalace.poempalace.org/cn/pearl009.htm
  3. ^ a b c http://www.marytown.cn/pearl/
  4. ^ Chao, Julie (December 12, 1999). "Taiwan tapioca tea on tap". San Francisco Examiner.
  5. ^ "Healthier Bubble Tea". Five by Fifty - Asian Consumer Intelligence. March 17, 2009.
  6. ^ http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/86628158.html
  7. ^ http://www.yes411.com/chcanada/listing.php?id=163395
  8. ^ http://diary.blog.yam.com/thomastsao/article/3890258
  9. ^ http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/7636294.html
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